The Režek family is one of the families in Plešivica that has a very long and documented history of growing and making wine. Those records show that in 1907 šipelj, an indigenous (and now quite rare) white wine was planted by the family in their vineyards, and the variety remains their signature grape even today. Today there are several wineries run by the cousins from the Režek family, and Krešimir is the fourth generation vintner and has recently started making and marketing wines under his label. He runs operations on their 3 hectares of vineyards on the best Plešivica locations, Veselnica and Mladina.
And on those 3 hectares several varieties are grown, rhine riesling, portugizac, pinot grigio, chardonnay, already mentioned šipelj and recently introduced Pinot Noir. They’ve worked hard on improving their grapes, and their vines are now around 15 years old, at the peak of their strength, and the varieties they’ve chosen are able to show their full potential on the slopes of Plešivica. The cellar combines the tradition with the new technologies, and they ferment their wines in big oak barrels, and then it’s poured into steel tanks to mature.
Portugizac is probably the best known brand of wine from Plešivica, and Režek family is, of course, also proud of their own, as it has the best varietal characteristics – it’s fruity, soft, refreshing, not too alcoholic and excellent with fattier meals. Chardonnay is also known to enjoy Plešivica terroir, and Režek’s chardonnay is fruity with a hint of vanilla, with high alcohols, and just enough acids to give it a rounded flavour. Their pinot grigio is a dry or a semi-dry wine with some residual sugar and honey and pineapple aroma with medium acidity. Rhine Riesling also shows excellent varietal characteristics, good acidity and apple and lemon aroma.
Režek sparkling wine is made using the classic method, using the blend of graševina and šipelj. It is matured for three years with yeasts, and the result is a dry sparkling wine with well-balanced fruity flavour and pleasant acidity. The family has built quite an ambitious tasting room that can host 40 guests, where they give guided tastings of their wines, including the opportunity to taste their archived wines, and they will offer you a very traditional meal – you will have to make a reservation for this in advance. They have also built a conference room that can host 60, where many wine seminars, meetings and presentations are held. Additionally, they offer accommodation to their guests right there on the spot, so you can indulge in the wine without the worry of getting out of the Plešivica hill after that last glass you didn’t really need…
